European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 14, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 22 a the stars and stripes wednesday August 14, 1991 . Team gripped by gripes Havana a track and Field which left the cubans glowing with Gold left the United states team glowering and griping. A everyone was complaining not just the americans but the canadians the jamaicans lots of people a said Sharon Hainer the Silver medallist in the heptathlon. A in 20 years in be never seen anything As unfair As the Way things Here were run. Its disillusioning. As a kid you dreamt an american track about this and then you get Here and realize the cheating and politics involved and you just can believe coming off its worst Gold medal Perfer Mance Ever a Only nine golds and 40 medals total a american athletes charged pan am officials with everything from efforts to psych them out to sexists remarks. Repeated false starts to races waiting too Long in the blocks before the gun inaccurate measurements and refusing to allow athletes to see the measurements All were mentioned. Hainer and Gold medallist Dede Nathan said distances in the heptathlon were consistently shortened for . Athletes. A we took turns checking for each other a Nathan said a everyone knew they were not being fair. It turned out All right Sharon and 1 got the last laugh but it Wasny to for the first time since the games began in 1951, the american track and Field team was beaten in total medals with the Host cubans finishing with 42, including 18 golds. A we had some bad Breaks a said women a coach Karen Demis. A one or two times i thought they May have been a coincidence but after the number we had i think there May have been a deliberate plan to put a Monkey wrench in our the griping which began Early in the events still was going on the final Day. Of the four relays a the menus and women a 400s and the menus and women a 1,600s a the americans had lost Only four times in 35 races since the games began. Sunday they lost three times winning Only the women a 1,600. A we went into it the underdogs and we knew we had to do More than just run Well to win it a said Anchor Jeral Miles. A we knew we get any Breaks. We weren to even counting on getting a fair trip to by Steven wine Havana apr baseball a Best players and some of its most Rabid fans soon will be separated by Only 150 Miles a trip of less than two hours but worlds apart. Where once the scores of big league games were awaited with interest a As were visits by major league players a political barriers Between the United states and Cuba Are now too much to overcome. That a Why the news that a National league expansion team is coming to Miami in 1993 has yet to reach the fans in Havana. Mention the Florida marlins during a game at latin americano stadium and the response is invariably a shake of the head. A this information in Cuba is very limited a said Michael arcades leaning Over a railing Down the first base line As he watched the cuban National team rout puerto Rico in the pan american games. �?o1 have heard there is a Pitcher in the United states who is 44 years Nolan Ryan is. Florida marlins no. Interviewed with the Aid of a translator most cuban fans said they know Little about baseball in the United states. A a in a not interested in the Usa baseball a Roberto Michael Bates right yells at Jeff Williams after they missed a Baton Exchange in sundays 400 relay costing . A Gold medal. In the menus 1,600 relay there was confusion at the Start when Lead off runner Clarence Daniel stopped briefly after thinking there had been a false Start. A there had been so Many false starts i guess i had it in my mind a Daniel said. A i thought i heard a second gun and then 1 saw a runner Stop he must have thought it was a false Start too. I stopped and looked around. I think that was the Start of our problems a but the biggest problem came on the final leg when Gabriel Luke was fighting for the Lead Down the Backstretch with Lazaro Martinez of Cuba and Patrick of Connor of Jamaica. Luke said he was tripped by both runners and Cut off by of Connor. A i tried to Bounce off him a Luke said. A the cuban Cut right in front of me and clipped me. That a illegal. A if he Hadnot clipped me i would have instead the cubans finished first in 3 01.93, with the United states second in 3 02.02. A i done to want to say much Quot Luke said after the race. A but i think they knew we were the team to beat and they were determined to beat us anyway they menus coach Joe Vigil downplayed the charges saying american will continue to be a dominate Force in track and Field in the olympics. A from my Point of View As a coach everything was fair Quot Vigil said. A there were some mistakes made but i feel they were honest the harassment was More apparent to Hainer. The Houston resident said she did not let on she spoke Spanish at first and listened to male officials discuss her body and make sexual remarks. A it was unbelievable a Hainer said. A they would say things like a look at her Beautiful Blue eyes a and How they a like to go to bed with on saturday when the Hep athletes were in the blocks for the 200-meter race Hainer said they were left there for an unusually Long time. A a i looked around and saw the cuban girl standing up just waiting while we were All set a she said. A i just blew my stack. I stood up and looked at the official and said a in be had it up to Here with you people. You Start this race and you Start it he looked at the others and said a she understands meaning that i understood Spanish and knew what they were saying All along. A Overall i liked Cuba the people and the Village a Hainer said. A i just Felt this was unfair. I think we were sacrificed in the name of better relations. Some of our officials should have stood up and yelled about what was going won t be for baseball a when you play for Money i think the players Don t love baseball. When you play for nothing there is no a Havana student Llanio Perez Perez said a i done to have much time. I work a Perez and two friends shrugged when told that two Spring training games in Miami last March Drew More than 120,000 fans Many of them cuban exiles. A we can to see any value about Usa baseball a Perez to see any value no the translator misspoke. A we can to see any video about Usa baseball a Perez said. In another Section of the stadium sit fans from puerto Rico. They be heard about the marlins and like the idea of big league baseball in the subtropics. A the puerto Picans have a preference for the teams of new York especially the a Yanqui a a said Jose Ortiz a sports writer in Ponce. But he said a switch in allegiance to the marlins is possible Quot especially if the Miami team gets Many puerto Ortiz is reminded that the marlins Likely will be a bad team at like the new York mets in �?T62, right a he said. There a no talk of Marv Throneberry in the cuban Section. But some of the fans said they follow the world series which they regard literally As a world championship. And most have heard of Oakland a a slugger Jose Canseco a cuban who moved to the United states As a child. A i know Jose Canseco but in a not interested in his life a said Aldo Wilson As he rises to applaud another hit by his team. A the baseball we follow is Here in fans in Havana Are aware that Canseco and other major leagues Are professional. To the cubans that diminishes the game. A when you play for Money i think the players done to love baseball a said Llanio Gonzalez Perez a student at the University of Havana who studies International relations. A when you play for nothing there is no Gonzalez expressed curiosity about the big leagues though and said Many of his countrymen would like to see a game in the United states. A my favorite team a Gonzalez said a is the tigers of new
